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FedEx officials confirmed Tuesday, March 26, 2013, that they plan to open a new distribution center at The Point, a South Point industrial park. The facility is expected to be completed in June.

FedEx to open new facility at The Point

Mar. 26, 2013 @ 11:00 PM

DAVID E. MALLOY

SOUTH POINT, Ohio -- FedEx Ground is building a new distribution center at a South Point industrial park to replace a facility it now has in Boyd County, Ky., a company spokesman confirmed Tuesday.

It was the first time the company verbally confirmed its plan to open a facility in The Point Industrial Park and that it would come at the expense of the Boyd County center in the Paul Coffey Industrial Park near Cannonsburg, Ky.

The new distribution center, now under construction and scheduled to be completed in June, will be approximately 75,000 square feet, according to FedEx Ground spokesman David Westrick.

About 110 jobs are expected at the new distribution center, said Jeremy Clay, director of The Point. The development of the industrial park is overseen by the Lawrence Economic Development Corporation.

"This is extremely positive," Bill Dingus, executive director at the development corporation, said Tuesday. "The ability to transport manufactured and assembled goods to other parts of the country will be very important to our overall economic health. We feel logistics and connecting our community to the nation is the key to our economic future."

The building is being erected by Scanell Properties, the largest builder of FedEx distribution centers, Clay said.

"There will be room for future growth in the new building," Westrick said.

The company spokesman declined to talk about specifics regarding jobs, including how many are now employed at the Boyd County center that will close.

Westrick said the new center will allow FedEx "to continue to meet and exceed customer demands in the region. When the new facility opens, positions will transfer from the existing station, and we will add to the workforce as necessary to support increased demand for service in the area.

"The site was chosen because of its ease of access to major highways, its proximity to customers' distribution centers and a strong local community workforce for recruiting employees," Westrick said.

The new building is part of a nationwide network expansion to boost daily package capacity and further enhance the speed and service capabilities of the FedEx Ground network, he said. Since 2005, the company has opened 11 new hubs featuring advance material-handling systems and expanded or relocated more than 500 local facilities, he said.